# Hermes Dpapi Secrets: Hermes Agent plugin

> Resolve Hermes environment variables at startup from a single secret file encrypted with the Windows Data Protection API, instead of keeping provider keys in plaintext in .env or auth.json.

Canonical: https://hermeswatcher.com/plugins/hermes-dpapi-secrets  
Tier: Community  
Official page (Nous Research): https://hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/docs/plugins/hermes-dpapi-secrets  
Last updated in catalog: 2026-10-25

Resolve Hermes environment variables at startup from a single secret file encrypted with the Windows Data Protection API, instead of keeping provider keys in plaintext in .env or auth.json. Config is secrets.dpapi.map, an ENV_VAR -> store-name mapping (bare names or dpapi:// names) plus an optional file path (default <HERMES_HOME>/secrets.dpapi). The file is one DPAPI blob keyed by the current Windows user profile, so it is unreadable by another Windows account and worthless off the machine; it is written by the bundled CLI (python -m hermes_dpapi_secrets set NAME, value read from a prompt or stdin, never from argv) and only read at runtime. Mapped names that are missing or empty are skipped with a warning; a file that is not ours, a blob this user cannot decrypt, or a payload that is not a flat string map is reported as an error with nothing injected.

## Good to know before installing

This source decrypts a file for every Hermes process that enables it: resolved values become environment variables of the Hermes process and its children, exactly like .env entries, so anything that can read that environment can see them. User-scope encryption only (the machine-wide flag is never used and is not exposed), and the at-rest protection is a bar for backups, cloud sync and dotfiles, not a boundary against code already running as the same user. Stdlib-only (ctypes): no Python dependencies, no subprocesses, no network calls, no self-update. Windows only. Applying fetched values stays the orchestrator's job; the plugin never writes os.environ itself. Disclosure — decrypts a DPAPI-encrypted secret file (default <HERMES_HOME>/secrets.dpapi) at startup for every Hermes process that enables it, and the resolved values become environment variables of Hermes and its child processes like `.env` entries; the encryption is per Windows user and protects backups, cloud sync and copied files, not against other code running as the same user. Local only: no network calls, no subprocesses.

From the plugin's catalog listing.

## How to install

1. Install it. Hermes asks for any API keys it needs, then asks whether to turn it on.

```bash
hermes plugins install hermes-dpapi-secrets
```

2. Said no? Turn it on later:

```bash
hermes plugins enable hermes-dpapi-secrets
```

3. Restart Hermes so it loads the plugin.

Some plugins also need a sign-in or settings: see the official page. Memory plugins ask whether to become your memory provider instead. Steps follow the official plugins guide: https://hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/docs/user-guide/features/plugins

## Facts

- Category: Coding & developer tools
- Maintained by: Yicheng-Mark (Community)
- Needs: No API keys declared
- Works on: windows
- Requires Hermes: `>=0.21.4`
- Version: 0.1.0
- In the catalog since: 2026-10-20, updated 2026-10-25

## Links

- [Full setup and settings (official page)](https://hermes-agent.nousresearch.com/docs/plugins/hermes-dpapi-secrets)
- [Source code](https://github.com/Yicheng-Mark/hermes-windows-plugins/tree/main/dpapi-secrets)
- [All plugins](https://hermeswatcher.com/plugins.md)

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